He Told Her Not To Drink That Cocktail
by Laura x Tennant
Summary: The Doctor has a bit of a problem. When faced with a Rose who's acting very differently from normal, what exactly should he do? Of course, he knows what he WANTS to do, but what SHOULD he do? And...what WILL he do? Now that is the question... x
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hi :D Right. Now. This is a cliché of monumental scale. Involving an alien aphrodisiac. Yeah. Not very original, I know, but I wanted to give it a go seeing as I haven't already lol. Anyways, I hope you like it, predictabilities and all...Enjoy if you will ;P x **

**Ohhhh, I almost forgot to say, Jack is in this too, even though this is Ten and Rose...I'd have loved a series with them three in it, so I love writing fics where you'll have to just imagine he's found them again somewhere during series 2 :D x**

**...**

**He Told Her Not To Drink That Cocktail...**

"Doctor...?" she began, and the Doctor knew there and then that she was going to ask him something cheeky. She had that curious, imploring tone of voice. Kind of mischievous. He sort of liked it. But he wasn't going to tell her that.

"Yes, Rose?" he replied, carrying their cups of tea over to the jumpseat, where she was laying casually.

"Do you ever think about sex?" she asked innocently.

He dropped the cups, and heard them smash to the floor, scattering shards of china everywhere and giving the grating a good soaking of boiling tea. A few wires hiss and fizz, and he just stared at her with a horrified expression on his face.

Did she really just ask him that? He was expecting cheeky, but not full on personal and related to...that.

He blinked, his throat dry.

"Doctor, you alright?" She sounded concerned, but he was very quick to realise that she was smirking beneath that facade of worried-ness. She stood up and laid a gentle hand on his arm. "You look like you've seen a ghost," she murmured.

He swallowed thickly. "I'm...I'm fine! Fine and dandy! Absolutely fine! Fit as a fiddle!" he announced, taking a step back from her.

She stepped towards him, closer this time. "You certainly are," she whispered seductively.

"Wh...what?" he stuttered. Rose was acting very strangely. She was never usually this...suggestive...

"So, you gonna answer my question or not?" she said, her breath hovering over his chin as she looked up at him.

He tried to step back further, but his bum only hit the console. He was trapped. And Rose...Rose was pushing herself further and further into his personal space with every moment.

"No," he muttered.

"No, you're not going to answer me? Or no, you don't?"

He averted his eyes from hers. Her eyes were looking a bit lustful right now, and he didn't think he could take anymore of gazing into them unless he wanted to have a hearts attack.

Which, coincidently, is something she very nearly gave him when she pushed her hips into his. However, due to that treacherous part of his brain that was quite happy with these turn of events, his hearts simply beat quite a lot faster, and pumped blood around other areas of his body fairly rapidly. No hearts attack here.

"No," he croaked out, very aware of her hand running up his arm, across his chest. She flicked open his jacket button.

"No?" she prompted.

"No, I er...I don't," he decided.

"You don't what?" she grinned sexily.

"I don't think about...that." He was lying profusely, of course, and Rose knew it.

"That's a shame," she said teasingly.

"Is it?" he squeaked.

"Mmm. 'Cos I don't think this part of your anatomy quite agrees with you," she giggled, pressing closer into him.

He felt a bit hot under the collar, at that. Well. More like a lot.

Oh dear.

"Rose...what's...er...what's going on?" he stuttered, even as he let her push his jacket off his shoulders.

"We're going to have sex," she said, as if it were obvious.

"Um...no...no we're not," he insisted, grabbing her wrists to stop her wandering hands before she got too carried away (and before he lost all ability to stop her.)

She pouted. "Why not?"

"Because you're quite obviously not in your right mind."

"Why would you think that?" she asked, apparently baffled.

"Because you never usually start to undress me and suggest doing...that."

"Well, I'm suddenly feeling the urge, so..."

"Rose, are you drunk? Has Jack given you hypervodka or something?" he asked her seriously.

"No! I just...I kind of need to...um..." Floundering in her words a little, she decided to show him. She stood on her tiptoes and brought his lips to hers in a ferocious kiss.

He lost it then. For a few minutes at least. He couldn't help it. She was Rose, and she was kissing him, and he didn't care if that were wrong because it was quite nice, weeellll, more than quite nice, and he was enjoying himself. But when she pulled back for air, he came to his senses. He gripped her upper arms and pushed her slightly away from him.

"Rose. Something's wrong, here. I can't...I can't let us do this when there's obviously something wrong. When did you start to feel so...up for it?" he asked tentatively.

"Since I met you," Rose grinned cheekily.

"Rose. Seriously, now. When did you feel the sudden urge to jump me?"

Rose tried to press against him again, but his firm grip kept their bodies away from each other. Close, but not quite touching. Which was very frustrating. Not to mention, distracting.

"Rose?" he prompted.

She cleared her throat. "Right. Um...when we came back from..." she faltered, looking at his lips intently.

"Rose!" he commanded, and her eyes snapped back up to meet his.

"Sorry...er...when we got back from Reaiko, no wait – it was as we were walking back to the TARDIS, I started to feel a bit weird. Sort of..." she trailed off, contemplating tugging his tie off so she could get a good look at his neck. And maybe bite him, just there –

"Rose, concentrate!"

"Oh...right...yeah. I sort of felt a bit tingly. And then, we got back here, and I had to sit on the jumpseat 'cos I came over all faint...but you and Jack were arguing and that _really s_houldn't have been so sexy and - "

The Doctor's eyebrows shot up. But no way was he touching that topic of conversation with a barge pole. _Eugh._

" – and then he went off in a huff 'cos you said something mean - "

" – it wasn't _mean. _I was simply telling him that his account of the Uksi War was completely wrong, because a) they didn't even have Mrolo guns at that point in time, and b) - "

" – I really don't care," inserted Rose, her hands creeping up to loosen his tie. There. That's better. Some tantalising bit of neck showing now. She'd quite like to –

"Right. Anyway, go on. What next?"

She shook her head, willing her imagination to stop supplying her images of the things she really wanted to do to him right now. "So you said you wanted a cuppa, so you went to the kitchen...and then..." she paused again, much to the Doctor's agitation.

She couldn't resist any longer. She leant forward so forcefully that his arms couldn't restrain her and she launched herself at his neck, nipping and licking and –

"Rose! Rose. Rooossse..."

She smiled against his neck, and began to unbutton his shirt.

"No!" he cried, rational thought returning again. "No, Rose, stop it. Stop it." He pushed her again, and this time she stumbled backwards, putting a good couple of metres distance between them.

"Oi!" she exclaimed, folding her arms.

"Sorry, but...but you have to...not do that..." he informed her. Somewhat regretfully.

"Doctor, why can't you just let it happen? It's going to _eventually,_" she told him dismissively.

"Yeah but – no, wait, _what?_ No it isn't. Just...um...carry on with what you were saying!" he told her, and as she stepped forward, he fled to the other side of the console room. "And stay there," he warned.

Rose rolled her eyes. "I don't bite," she laughed.

He raised an eyebrow and gestured to his neck. "Er, yes you do," he retorted.

She grinned. "Yeah, but you liked that."

He narrowed his eyes at her and avoided the question. "So...? I went to the kitchen and...?"

She frowned, thinking. "And...oh yeah. And then, I started to feel really strange. Like, my vision went all blurry, and I stood up and then fell back down into the chair again. Then...then after a few tries I managed to stand up properly, and came in to talk to you about it. Then I saw you in the kitchen, putting the teabags in the mugs and I came over all funny. Like...a sort of surge of...of...I dunno..."

_Love_

"...and then you sensed I was there or whatever and asked me to get the milk out of the fridge. So I did, and my hands were shaking and everything. And then I handed it to you and your thumb brushed against mine briefly and then I had to lean against the counter 'cos I felt like I was going to faint again..." she trailed off, watching his thoughtful gaze process this.

"Is that why you rather spectacularly fled the kitchen without so much as a 'hello, goodbye?'"

She nodded. "Yeah...'cos I realised I was feeling quite...well, that I'd quite like to...kiss you. So I thought I'd better get out of there before I did something I'd regret. Then you came in here, and I'd been trying to get my heart rate back to normal rhythm but seeing you made me realise that I..."

"You...?"

"I..."

"Go on," he urged her.

"I don't care about the consequences anymore. I just want...I just want you."

He gulped. "Right."

"And that's about it," she finished, her eyes roving up and down him as she spoke.

"Rose...I think you better come down to the med bay..." he said carefully.

"But I'm fine. I feel fine," she insisted.

"Rose, you've had blurry vision and have been feeling faint. Add that to the fact that you spontaneously 'want' me, you are definitely not fine."

"Look, Doctor - "

" – no. No more. You're coming with me, _now._" He ignored her suggestively raised eyebrow, walked over to her and grabbed her arm, leading her to the infirmary.

"Doctor, you know, we could skip all the medical equipment, and you could just...I dunno...examine me yourself?" she suggested.

"Rose."

"Yes?"

"Be quiet."

"What? It seemed like you threw yourself into that kiss back there, so I dunno why you're suddenly acting all repulsed by the notion of me and you..._dancing."_

He span around so fast that Rose nearly fell over, but she didn't because he pressed her against the wall and held her there, his hands framing her face. "I'm not," he whispered.

"Then let yourself give in, for once. Make love to me," she requested, her voice suddenly soft.

He swallowed nervously. "Not like this. Not when you're obviously not quite...right. Rose, I think maybe, back on Reaiko, you came in contact with something. It's called the Eroa tree, and often the Reaikoese use the leaves from the tree to make a sweet-tasting mixer. Did you have one of those cocktails that I told you not to drink when we walked past that market stall?"

Her eyes widened. "Oh."

"I'll take that as a yes," he scolded, but then he smiled gently at her.

"It wasn't _my_ fault!" she insisted.

He rolled his eyes.

"It wasn't! It was Jack, he said I 'simply had to try one, they're delicious, don't listen to the old man.'"

The Doctor's expression turned thunderous. "He...he _what_...oh that man is in _serious _trouble."

"Why? Look, I don't understand what's so wrong with - "

" – Rose, the leaves from the Eroa tree are like - "

" - I drank an aphrodisiac," she interrupted, breathing heavily and getting the gist of what had happened by the way she _really _couldn't think of much else but a naked Doctor right now.

"Basically...yeah."

"And Jack knew this," she assumed, biting her lip to keep her from closing the gap between them.

"Yes," he said curtly.

Rose grinned. "Guess he's getting a bit frustrated with us turning him down all the time," she laughed.

"Rose. It doesn't wear off. Weelll, it does, it just takes a long time."

She stopped laughing.

(She also stopped her hands, which were previously taking a journey down the Doctor's back and over his bum, but seeing as both of them had profusely pretended to ignore that she was even doing it anyway, he couldn't exactly complain when she stopped _that_.)

"_What?" _she exclaimed.

"You have to...wait for ages for it to...wear off...sometimes, it can take, ooh, hours?"

"_Hours?" _

"Weeelll. Days, sometimes. But don't worry - "

"_Days? _I can't go on feeling like this for _days!_ I'll explode!"

He looked a bit sheepish. "Sorry. Actually, no I'm not. It's Jack that should be apologising," he muttered.

"There's nothing you can give me...no drugs or antidote or something to counteract it?"

"No."

"Well that's a bit stupid, isn't it? Not having an antidote for that when you have one for everything else."

"I didn't exactly plan on having to use one," he retorted hotly, his breath fluttering against her lips.

"Yeah, but you took us to that place where it was _possible _that one of us might drink some of that...whatever it was called..."

"Eroa."

"Whatever."

"Sorry."

"Hmph." A thought suddenly occurred to her. "Hang on, if you knew all this anyway, and you don't have an antidote, why are – were – you taking me to the med bay?"

"I can do some tests; see how big the dose is. And so work out how long it will take for you to...er...recover."

"Shouldn't be days though, right? 'Cos I only had one. They wouldn't put that big a dose in one drink, surely?"

"The Reaikonese are very tactile and...well. Et cetera. Think, like rabbits, only a thousand times more."

"Oh."

"But they don't naturally get like that. That's what the holy tree of the Eroa is for. That's their - "

" – Viagra?"

"If you like," he chuckled.

"Doctor?" she whispered, trying really, _really _hard not to latch her lips onto his.

"Yeah?" he murmured back.

"I really, _really _hate to say this, but...could you get away from me please? Because if you're standing this close but not actually doing anything to relieve this completely exhausting but incredibly amazing feeling that I have right now, I won't be responsible for my actions."

He pulled away from her and tugged his ear awkwardly. "Right. Yes. Course. Sorry."

"To the med bay?"

"To the med bay," he agreed, nodding swiftly.

**TBC...**


	2. Chapter 2

**He Told Her Not To Drink That Cocktail...**

_**Part 2**_

_Two hours later..._

"Hey Doc!" called Jack cheerfully, walking into the console room.

"Jack!" the Doctor exclaimed, turning around. "There you are. I want a word with you."

"It's you, you can have several."

"Just to warn you, I'm very angry."

"Hmm, that could be kinda hot..."

The Doctor rolled his eyes. "Jack."

"What's up?"

"Rose," the Doctor declared.

"Oh yeah, how is she?" Jack grinned knowingly.

"You know very well. Why did you tell her to drink that cocktail? She's only gone and ingested enough Eroa to last her a _week._"

"Well, you'll just have to help her out with that, won't you?" smirked Jack. "Surprised you haven't already," he added, realising that the Doctor gave no impression that he'd been...well_. Dancing_ with Rose.

"Don't be ridiculous. Anyway, why did you do it?" he asked him irritably.

"I've been watching you two mentally undress each other for...well, god knows how long, but it's too long. I thought you needed a prod in the right direction."

"You talk utter rubbish," insisted the Doctor, shaking his head ruefully.

"Like hell I do. You're the ones always lying about your feelings."

"Jack, the long and short of it is, Rose is in her room feeling incredibly..." he faltered.

"Hot for you?" supplied Jack.

The Doctor glared at him. "And she's going to be like that..."

"- Hot for you - " he interjected again.

"...for days. I don't have an antidote and so she's going to have to put up with it."

"Doctor. You do have an antidote."

He frowned. "No, I don't. Funnily enough, I wasn't prepared for that to happen."

Jack stepped closer to him. "I don't mean medicine..." he murmured in a hushed tone. "You know what you have to do to make her feel better."

"Jack, that doesn't counteract it," replied the Doctor, considering the prospect in his mind before reminding himself that _no I can't because it's not right and I've already denied her that anyway so stop contemplating it because it ain't. gonna. happen_.

"No, but it'd make it easier to bear. You'll just have to exercise that wonderful stamina of yours for seven days, and that way, she won't want to kill you before the end of the week."

"It's not my fault; it's yours, so she'll want to kill _you."_

"No, because it's not me that's rejecting her, is it?" Jack countered.

"If I could help her, I would," he said carefully. "But..."

"But you won't do that," Jack finished.

"It's not fair on her," the Doctor justified in the face of Jack's tutting.

"Why isn't it?"

"Because," he paused, swallowing thickly. "Because it would be like taking advantage of her."

Jack rolled his eyes. "She wants it anyway," he told him.

The Doctor's brow crinkled. "Yes, because she's been given an aphrodisiac! Because of _you, _I hasten to add!"

His friend rolled his eyes again. "No, I _mean, _she'd want it even if she hadn't been. That only helps things along..."

The Time Lord's eyebrows shot up. "_What?"_

"Oh come on, don't tell me you don't notice it. The way she looks at you."

He didn't reply, simply averted his gaze, a frown on his face as he took in Jack's words.

"And the way you look at her makes it very obvious you want to too," continued Jack.

The Doctor's head snapped back up. "_What?" _he repeated.

Jack raised a disbelieving eyebrow, and the Doctor shook his head rapidly.

"No! No I don't. I don't know where you got that idea from..." he mumbled, spinning around to fiddle with the console.

"You are such a liar."

"No I'm not."

"Yes you are."

"She's my friend, Jack."

"Your best friend."

"Exactly."

"Who you want to sha - "

"Jack!"

"It's true though."

"No, it _isn't," _the Doctor insisted.

"Yes it is."

"Oh, shut up."

"No. You want to do more than hug her and hold her hand. Admit it," Jack pestered.

"Nonsense. I'm a - "

" – now don't you give me all that 'I'm a Time Lord, so I don't do or want that' crap. You and I both know that even if that's been the case before, it certainly isn't now. She's different."

"She's my _friend," _the Doctor said again, because he could think of no alternative comeback. Jack was right, after all.

"She's way more than that. And you know it. So why can't you just take this opportunity to tell her?"

"There is nothing to tell. And anyway, she's not in her right mind."

"Doesn't mean she won't remember when she's back to normal."

"Beside the point," the Doctor sighed.

"Just do what she needs you to do, Doctor. Stop messing around. Stop analysing it so much. It's not taking advantage if she wants it just as much as you."

"Jack, just drop it, ok? She'll recover fine on...well," he coughed awkwardly. "On her own. I'm not going to get involved."

"You're insane."

"Thankyou."

"No, really. You're insane. You have the chance to make love to Rose Tyler, like you've wanted to do for bloody _years_, and you're going to abandon that because you think it's better to be a gentleman and let her get on with it _herself?_ Are you completely _deranged?_ If it was me she was after - "

" - but it's not, is it?" the Doctor snapped irritably.

Jack grinned. "Oh, there we go."

"What?" he replied, shifting uncomfortably.

"Nothing," Jack smirked. Right, time to take a different approach. "You know, you're right. I don't think you should get involved."

"What?" He almost sounded disappointed, Jack thought. In fact, he did.

"I think _I _should." Jack smiled triumphantly, and laughed internally at the reaction his words got.

"_What?"_ the Doctor shrieked, in a way that was entirely undignified.

"Well, look at me. I'm not you, but I'll do. And I have an excellent, experienced reputation. She'd be sorted in ten minutes. Maybe even five."

Jack didn't miss the look of horror flit across the Doctor's face. Or the way his jaw clenched. Or the way his hands were gripping the edge of the console so tightly that his knuckles were turning white. And, Jack thought, maybe the reason he wasn't saying anything in response to what he'd just said was because he couldn't. He looked like he was going to explode.

"And I'm willing to do anything and _everything _it takes to help her. Guess that's what friends are for, right? And I'm certainly not considering losing this one and only chance to become acquainted with her - "

" - Stop it," the Doctor interrupted, grounding the two words out harshly.

"What's that?" Jack asked innocently.

"Stop it. Don't...don't even _think_ of..." he replied heatedly.

Jack chuckled and folded his arms proudly. "And why not?"

"Just don't," he said, glaring at him.

"But why not?"

"Because...just because."

"It'd be taking advantage?" Jack guessed.

"Yes."

"But she needs it. I'd be doing her a favour by...well, by doing her." He grinned even in the face of the stormy look he was being given by the Time Lord. He now knew where the Daleks had got the whole 'Oncoming Storm' idea from. _Man,_ could this man cast a death glare. Especially, it seemed, if his friend was talking about sleeping with his other friend (whom he was in love with.)

"Jack," the Doctor said shortly.

"Doctor," he countered, amusement heavy in his voice.

"It would...it would still be using her, though. You can't just...she's your friend...you can't just...she's...she's..." _Mine._

"She's not mine to help. She's yours. That what you're trying to say?" Jack smirked.

"No! No, of course not." _Yes._

"You're lying again."

"Oh, for goodness's sake!" Why could Jack read him like a book?

"Right, let's bring together all the evidence," Jack said, as if trying to solve a mystery. "You and her have barely been apart since you kidnapped her all those years ago - "

" – I did _not _kidnap her," the Doctor sighed wearily.

"_Exactly!_ She _wanted _to come with you. Ooh! Did you hear that? I didn't even mean to do that, but doesn't that sentence sound like it could fit very well in this current situa - "

" – Jack!" he exclaimed furiously.

Jack laughed heartily. "Anyway, on with my deduction. So, you're always together, mostly always touching in one way or another – evidently, the pair of you have little concept of 'personal space.'" The Doctor looked ready to butt in again, but Jack continued quickly. "Which is as much to be expected, considering how smitten you are. You act like a couple of teenagers - "

He did interrupt here. " – No we don't!"

"And you are completely infatuated with the way she walks, talks, looks – everything. And I'm hardly naive enough to think that that's purely physical attraction, because it's more than that with you."

The Doctor couldn't speak at that, his mouth had suddenly gone dry.

"And she's the same with you. Don't pretend you don't know how she feels about you," Jack ordered.

"I..." he began.

"And don't pretend you don't feel the same way. You get completely jealous when anyone that's not you even talks to her, let alone suggests the things I was suggesting I should do with her earlier."

"I don't get _jealous," _he muttered.

"And your eyes light up when she laughs at something you've said."

"It's nice to hear her laugh," he sniffed indignantly.

"And your chest puffs up with pride when she's amazed by some wonderful planet you've shown her."

"Well, I suppose I'm too egocentric, then."

"It's not that. It's about making her happy. Because in your opinion – and in mine – she's the most deserving person of this fantastic way of living you've given her in the whole universe, and you can't wait to see her smile at the brilliance of it all, just to know she's happy. With you."

"With this life," the Doctor mumbled.

"With _you," _Jack corrected.

The Doctor walked over to the console screen and began to pretend to read it as a distraction.

"You're practically a couple."

The Doctor didn't flinch. Only one thing to do. He was going to ignore Jack. So, he deliberately didn't even flinch. He wasn't going to give him the satisfaction.

"You are, though. All the evidence points to it. You're definitely almost a couple. Just without the sex. Which means you really are a couple. One of the old and married variety."

"Thought you said we were teenagers," the Doctor grumbled, decidedly sulkily.

"Yeah, well, teenagers would be far happier to jump into bed with someone like Rose Tyler at the first chance they got. You're acting like an old man. Actually, I suppose you are an old man. Are you even capable anymore? Has it been a while? Is that why you're so reluctant? Are you scared you'll disappoint her?" Jack smirked.

The Doctor glared at the screen in front of him, but said nothing.

Jack waited a few moments, then went back to his previous argument when he realised that this one wasn't going to provoke a reaction. "So, you're a couple, yeah? We agree on that at least?"

How the hell can he ignore such a persistent man? It's ridiculous. The Time Lord sighed. "If you want to put it like that," he half-admitted.

Jack smiled. "Exactly," he paused, thinking over how to phrase his next point. "And yet you don't want to have sex with her," he concluded, not believing a word of it.

The Doctor swallowed nervously and tugged his ear, still staring at the screen rather than at Jack.

"Well, Doctor?" Jack prompted.

"Just leave it, Jack. She'll be fine."

"That's not what I asked."

"You didn't ask anything. You simply stated a point."

Jack rolled his eyes. "Alright then. So, here's the question. Was my point wrong?"

The Doctor sighed and turned to look at his friend. He rubbed his eyes tiredly before answering him. "Maybe," he confessed. No use going on denying it to Jack. He'll never give up otherwise.

Jack beamed at him. "Finally, we're getting somewhere! So, go get her!"

"Jack, just because maybe, just maybe, there's a teeny, tiny, _little_ bit of me that wants to do exactly that, it doesn't mean I can."

It was Jack's turn to sigh impatiently. "Why _not?" _he whined.

"I've been telling you that for the past ten minutes! It's not fair on her."

"Bollocks. What's not fair on her is you making her wait and wait and wait, hoping you'll do what you both want and initiate the next part of your relationship, even though she thinks you'll never do that because of your stupid, proud principles!"

"Did she say that?" the Doctor can't help but ask. "Does she really think that's why I..." he trailed off, embarrassed by his obvious anxiety at the prospect.

"She'll stay with you forever. With or without more. That's what she said," Jack told him.

The Doctor opened and closed his mouth, but found he had no words to say to that. Eventually, he wheezed out an "Oh..."

"Yes. 'Oh...'" Jack replied.

"Um...so...so she does actually, you know...she'd actually quite like to..." the Doctor asked, stumbling over his words. He was vaguely mortified that he was asking Jack this, but his need for a definite answer rather than Jack's earlier teasing as confirmation was strong enough to override his humiliation.

"Of course she does. I already told you that," Jack laughed.

"You could have been lying. Joking around. You could still be doing that, actually," the Doctor replied, frowning.

"But I'm not."

"Right."

"Doctor, please, just do it," begged Jack.

"Do what?"

They both spun around in the direction of a very familiar female voice.


	3. Chapter 3

**He Told Her Not To Drink That Cocktail...**

_**Part 3**_

"Nothing, Rose. Nothing at all," ensured the Doctor, giving Jack a sideways glance that said 'Don't you dare...' in the process.

"How are you feeling, Rosie?" asked Jack, who was walking towards her.

She glared at him. "Neither of you come anywhere near me. It's worse when there's skin-to-skin contact," she said, swallowing thickly and really, _really_ trying hard to resist the urge to launch herself at the Doctor. Or Jack. Right now, either will do. She needed...oh god, she just _needed._

"I was just saying to the Doctor that he should help you out with that," grinned Jack.

"Jack," the Doctor said warningly.

"Yeah, I've had a similar conversation with him, but he appears to be reluctant to do as I ask," Rose mumbled grumpily. She started to walk, rather awkwardly, kind of stiffly, past them to go and make herself some hot chocolate in the kitchen.

"Can't see why," commented Jack casually, as the Doctor scoffed. "I would."

She paused. She thought for a moment, considering her options. She decided that she had the opportunity to at least elicit some sort of reaction from the Doctor.

"You would?" she asked, turning to face him. She made sure she had a hopeful tone to her voice as she said it, and was looking at the Doctor's face out of the corner of her eye. She saw how his jaw clenched and the way he gripped hold of the console screen and seemed to steady himself. Hmmm...

Jack knew what she was up to; he didn't miss the sideways glance she sent in the Doctor's direction. "Course I would," he proclaimed, playing along.

"Well...that could be...con_duct_ive..." she replied, emphasising the word and pronouncing the '_duct_' in a very deliciously se_duct_ive way. She would've missed it if she hadn't been listening out for it, but Rose distinctly heard the Doctor _groan._ Whether in anger or desire, she wasn't too sure. Probably a mixture of both.

"It certainly could," answered Jack, moving so that he was standing directly in front of her. He trailed a hand up her arm and she took a sharp intake of breath at his touch. Very deliberately.

Jack looked over at the Doctor and saw the stormy look was very prominent on his features at that moment. In fact, he looked almost ready to hit someone. Very hard. He'd already started pressing buttons and pulling levers on the console rather violently. God knows where they were going to end up if he tried to fly the TARDIS in this state. But Jack reckoned he wasn't actually intending to go somewhere, he was simply taking his anger out on the nearest objects. Jack felt quite guilty for the TARDIS then, but this whole escapade was entirely necessary to get the Doctor to take action, and she probably knew that too.

"Rose, is it okay if I kiss you?" asked Jack, smiling ever-so-evilly.

"Of course," she answered, a similar _mwa-ha-ha-ha_ expression on her face.

The Doctor's hand accidently slipped as he heard this, and he electrocuted himself quite spectacularly. Shaking his hurt hand and wincing at the pain, he was astounded to see his friends hadn't even noticed, and were gazing at each other intently.

Of course, they noticed really. Indeed, it took all of their willpower not to burst out laughing. But the Doctor still hadn't protested to their closeness out loud a great deal, and they risked the chance of him feeling hurt by their unconcerned appearance in order to tempt him over here to claim Rose for himself.

Jack framed her face with his hands, and slowly leant his head forward. She closed her eyes, her hands coming up and gripping his shirt. She sensed some Doctor Movement, and smiled to herself.

Almost as soon as Jack's lips touched Rose's, they heard the Doctor growl, "That's enough."

Jack pulled back slightly, still holding Rose up against him. "What? Why?"

"Because I've had enough of watching you two...doing this..."

"Shall we go get a room then?" Jack asked seriously, and Rose couldn't help the giggles that erupted from her. She started to nuzzle his neck then, tucked into his embrace, and the Doctor's scowl grew even more thunderous when he realised that she might actually quite happily go along with Jack's offer, considering her current arousal levels.

"No. That's not what I meant," he said, low and firm and fuming in his tone of voice.

"Oh. Ok," Jack responded, then proceeded to bring Rose's mouth back to his.

"Stop it," growled the Doctor again.

Jack and Rose both looked at the Doctor this time with matching questioning looks.

He stared at her heatedly. "Would you really want this, Rose? If you weren't...under the influence of an aphrodisiac...would you really want to sleep with Jack?" the Doctor asked her.

She shrugged. "Well, no one else will have me, so..." she trailed off, looking at him meaningfully.

As soon as she said that, the Doctor couldn't stop himself any longer. He shoved Jack out of the way and gripped Rose's upper arms. He cleared his throat.

"_Rose,"_ he murmured huskily, and the way he said her name would have been able to weave an entire story even if a stranger were to stumble upon the scene. It spoke of passion, and want, and lust, and need. And most of all, love. Reverence. As if the word was a prayer. Some sort of holy thing to be kept precious and preserved. Or a delectable piece of chocolate to be savoured, not devoured. A stranger would be able to tell, with that one word the Doctor spoke, that there was a tingling in the air, an electricity, a pulse of anticipation _it's gonna happen it's gonna happen._ A stranger would be able to tell of their too-long- tolerated tension. And their unreserved love. And their unrestrained desire. And the stranger would blush at the power of that word, _Rose, _said in that way, by _him_, even if they didn't quite realise why.

"Finally, he gets it..." Jack muttered as he walked away, grinning from ear to ear, to give them some privacy. And get himself a cold shower.

Left alone, Rose wasted no more time in being apart from the Doctor's lips. She thrust her hands into his hair and pulled him roughly towards her, kissing him with all the unresolved passion she felt inside. They stumbled backwards until her back hit one of the columns, and then they fell to the floor in a bit of a heap. He pulled back, reminding her to breathe, and she whispered between panting breaths, "So, are you going to help me now?"

"I don't think I can resist," he answered, resigned to fate. The inevitable. She was right, earlier...this was always going to happen. And maybe Jack was right, too. He had needed a bit of a prod in the right direction. But he'd never ever admit that, of course.

"That's what I like to hear," she laughed, before pushing up to kiss him again.

"Bedroom," he mumbled against her lips.

"Bedroom," Rose agreed with a swift nod.

And to the bedroom he carried her.

(And they stayed in said bedroom for an awfully long time. All necessary, of course.)

**A/N: Helllooo :D Hope you liked it :) **

**Ooh, by the way, I was wondering if everyone liked the second part to Let's Just Pretend...? Cos I'd really love to hear your thoughts on it if you've read it, as it got a good few reviews on part one, but like NOTHING for part two lol :/ I'm hoping that doesn't mean it was a bit shite... Lol :P**

**And while I'm here plugging my other stories lol, I just thought I'd let you know that another chapter/oneshot of Better With Two has been posted, called Not Romantic. AND, finally, I promise you now, I WILL at some point, continue both Distractions and The Slow Path. However, I'm getting all the bits and bobs finished and posted that I've already mostly written, hence the new things being up and not finishing the multi-chapter stories first :S. But when I have a spare few hours from the horrendous pile of school work I've got accumulating, I'll get the other things continuing/finished too. Woah, soz about this loooonnnng a/n...I'll wind up now. Anyways, hope you enjoyed this, and I look forward to hearing your feedback, if you are so inclined :D :D :D much love xxxxxx**


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